Variety: SAG-AFTRA drew more than 500 supporters Thursday to a spirited rally as its video game strike moves into its fourth month.
“We are not going to stop until we have a fair contract for our members,” said David White, SAG-AFTRA national executive director. “This is not just about money. It’s about fair working conditions and secondary compensation.”
3 comments:
It is good to hear that some companies are starting to agree with the demands of the SAG-AFTRA members on strike. I personally support their endeavors as, even in my generally conservative views, don't think what they're asking for is unreasonable. Several companies already agreeing to the terms that they have presented even proves that. It is also nice to hear that many related unions are joining in the protest because it really puts their protests on a united front. I especially think it is ironic that the companies will not agree to things like vocal-stress protection and residuals when literally every other industry involving actors already has. They don't really have any ground to stand on besides being stuck in old ways and I suppose not wanting to fork over the money. And as I said last time, I'm very surprised to hear that Disney is one of the companies being picketed against. But perhaps they were one of the ones to agree but ask that their name not be disclosed.
Wow, this has been going on for a while. I personally didn’t know of this situation happening in the first place, but it seems a little ridiculous for this to dragged out for so long (since 2015). Not in terms of the people doing the strike, but the fact they had needed to because the companies are unwilling to come to a compromise when concerning compensation and general protection for their workers. Voice actor and stunt performance isn’t something light nor an easy job. Just like any singer or actor, there are strenuous factors within their job that if they aren’t taken care of, could risk the performer’s body and carrier. One thing that also really peeved me is when Scott Witlin was quoted about SAG-AFTRA is more focused on compensation than money. WELL OF COURSE THEY ARE! Their strike is to protest the performers lack of compensation and treatment, not the money! And Witlin calls that the old model! That just really annoyed, because I can get a glimpse of the reason why they can’t settle anything and it isn’t just because of the deal, it is the crappy people.
I remember learning about this strike through an article on the newspage last semester, and commenting on my support for SAG-AFTRA and a fair and even negotiation. I’m sad to learn that a decision has not yet been reached, and that the strike is still continuing. I remember finding it strange though, from the last article, that SAG-AFTRA didn’t put the pay hike to a member vote. I felt like that was a fair way to determine if the pay increase met the demands of the union members. But after reading this article, I can see why the union wouldn’t want to present that offer to their members. The companies’ representative talked about how they believed the pay increase to be a fair offer, and that the union’s non-monetary demands are outdated. But what they essentially implied was that ‘If I pay you enough, you will work under any conditions’. That’s a very dangerous mindset to have. It may not be as big of an implication now, but what happens when the union brings up an issue on safety? The response can’t be ‘I’ll pay you more to work in unsafe conditions’. It’s just not right. To me, SAG-AFTRA made the right call in not taking the pay hike, you cannot buy people out of good working conditions.
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